Vows
by savvyliterate
Summary: In the middle of the night, Gourry gets an unlikely visitor ... and it changes everything.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer:** Slayers does not belong to me, but belongs to Hajime Kanzaka and Rui Araizumi and the companies that represent them. I'm just borrowing the characters for a little while. There is a line of dialogue toward the end of this prologue that is inspired by the Doctor Who episode "Doomsday." Those familiar with it will know it when they see it.

**Note:** This started off as a one-shot birthday fic for **Prettio **and blew up from there. Blame this on a combination of too much Doctor Who, working on a webcomic and Fenikkusuken's "The Phoenix Blade." I figured if I left it at a one-shot, I'd have people on my doorstep calling for my murder before the night's out.

Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж

Prologue

His eyes snapped open.

Everything seemed quiet. The moonlight shone through the lace curtains and made cobweb patterns on the ceiling. The only sound was crickets chirping, and the sound of his heavy breathing. Gourry sat up, scooping his hair out of his face from it had fallen out of the tie he secured it with before sleeping.

Something wasn't right.

He slid out of bed, picking up his sword as he did so. Usually, when he felt like this, it was some sort of mazoku targeting Lina. Always go with his gut, his father had counciled him before his death, and Gourry's gut hadn't proven him wrong yet.

He padded quietly on bare feet to the window and stared out at the main street of the town they were staying in. Nothing seemed amiss there. Gourry scanned the street, then sighed. Lina had probably sneaked away to go bandit hunting again. She told him she would at least leave a note or something, but knowing her, the thrill of the hunt had gotten into her and she forgot. Shaking his head, he turned to go back to bed when a bright flash of light filled the room, momentarily blinding him. He threw his arm over his eyes, then carefully lowered it as the light subsided. He shifted into a battle stance ... then noticed the familiar red and black heap on the floor by the door.

"Lina!" Gourry yelled, throwing his sword on the bed as he raced to her side.

He reached her at the same time she moaned, then pushed herself onto her knees. She cradled her head in her hands for a moment before dragging her fingers down her face, then looked up at him. Her eyes went wide with shock. "Gourry?" she gasped.

"Lina?" he questioned, but before he could get any further, she was on her feet and her arms were around him.

"You're alive," she said, and his jaw dropped. He could count on one hand the number of times Lina Inverse willingly hugged him ... not that he didn't wish for it.

"You're OK," she murmured, her ear pressed to his heart. She pulled back and smiled into his stunned eyes. Then she frowned and pulled away from him, first scanning him, then the room. Then she swore, breaking away completely. "Damn it all to hell. This isn't the right time!"

Gourry gave her a blank look as she began to pace the room, and that's when he noticed that it just wasn't her attitude that was off. Her clothes were remarkably different. Her cloak was shorter, and she wore black shorts rather than leggings. Some sort of black breastplate covered her chest, secured at her waist with a yellow sash. She wore a bracelet, a piece of leather really with some sort of green gem dangling from it, on her left arm. Her boots and the tunic she wore under the breastplate were familiar. She was a bit thinner, her hair a touch longer. She seemed tired, he realized, more exhausted than even after the battle they had a few weeks earlier against a good friend.

Before he could analyze her any further, Lina swung around. "What time is it?" she demanded.

"Uhh ... a couple hours until dawn?"

"No! Gah." Lina tugged at her bangs. "What time are we in? What year is it?" Before Gourry could answer, she started pacing again. "Not that'll tell me much." She whirled, jabbing a finger into Gourry's chest. "Who did we fight last?"

Gourry's mind raced to catch up, part of him still stalled at the unusually intimate contact with his partner. "Well, there's a bandit group outside of town you wanted to ..."

"That's not helping!" Lina screamed at him and he flinched. She spotted the sword on the bed behind him. "You've got the Blast Sword," she murmured. "Okay, that narrows it down. I can't be too far off." She fell silent for a moment, as if weighing her next question carefully. "Is Luke still alive?" she asked softly. "Luke and Millina?"

Understanding dawned. "You're not the same Lina who's asleep next door, are you?"

Lina paced back to him. "Gourry, please. I need to know."

He gave her a sad look. "They died three weeks ago."

Lina let out a long breath. "I'm not far off. I need to go back, tweak the calculations ... there's enough for a second try. Only one more, but we can nail it this time." She took out an amulet from her cape and shot Gourry a sad smile. "Don't tell me what you saw just now, OK?"

"Wait!" Gourry grabbed her free hand before she could touch the amulet. "You can't just leave. I don't get what's going on here. Where did you come from?"

"I have to!" Lina scowled at him and tried to jerk free, but his hold only tightened. "I'm not suppose to be here," she hissed. "I'm out of my own time." She relaxed a bit, and figured she owed him somewhat of an explanation. "Gourry, I can't tell you why I'm here because I'm from your future. If I tell you the wrong thing, it causes a paradox. Hell, if the younger me caught me in here with you, we'd all be screwed." Her eyes softened. "Gourry," she said in a whisper, "you have to let me go without any questions. Please. To protect both me and the younger Lina sleeping next door."

Gourry hesitated, but she had him. He would do anything to protect her ... even this. He nodded and let go of her hand. He fully expected her to disappear, but she didn't. She stared at the amulet for a moment, then lifted her gaze until it locked on his eyes. "There's a war going on," she said slowly, "and we're losing. I can't tell you any more," she said as he opened his mouth. "What I'm doing right now is extremely dangerous and even more illegal. Hell, I may not even survive getting back to my own time. I don't even know if you're alive or dead at the point in the future where I originally came from."

"Everything's going to be fine," Gourry instinctively replied. "Whatever we've faced ... we've always overcome it." He gave her a bright, confident smile and was relieved when she returned it after a moment.

"You never change," she said with obvious affection, and Gourry wondered what had transpired between the two of them in the future to create some sort of intimacy between them. He knew how he felt about her, but Lina ... well, her face was probably sketched next to the entry for "denial" in the dictionary. He almost checked once to see if it really was.

The future Lina approached him as he mulled over this, taking a lock of his hair in one hand and tugging him down until she could wrap her arms around his neck. Gourry inhaled sharply, and then she was kissing him, deeply and passionately. He froze, mind reeling from shock and knew it had to be some sort of dream. Weirdest dream of his life, he decided.

Well, if you're dreaming, his mind told him, don't you think you better make the most out of this kiss?

_Oh yeah ..._

His eyes drifted close, and before he could reciprocate, she pulled away. She looked, sad, yet determined as she took hold of the amulet once more. Then, she gave him a wry grin. "I suppose," she said, "if it's my last chance to say it ... even to a past you ... Gourry Gabriev, I love you." Then she pressed her hand to the gem in the center of the amulet, muttered an incantation and was gone.


	2. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** Slayers does not belong to me, but belongs to Hajime Kanzaka and Rui Araizumi and the companies that represent them. I'm just borrowing the characters for a little while.

**Note:** If you look very closely at the new cover of novel 15, you can see that Gourry's actually wearing a robe, not a shirt. I modeled his outfit after Japanese fanartist FMK's interpretation of the 15th novel cover.

Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж

Chapter 1

The bandits never knew what hit them ... at first.

They had been enjoying a rather hearty meal of roast beef sandwiches, fried chipped potatoes, copious amounts of ale, and various sweets. Some of their girlfriends had come out from the closest village and a few had gone off for conjugal visits. It was a very good day to be a bandit.

Then the fireball hit.

It incinerated the tree behind their boss. It was followed in quick succession by a torching of the tents they slept in, along with copious amounts of destruction, taunting, and finally a Flare Arrow that singed the boss's rear. As they fled screaming into the hills, the remains of their dinner - along with the loot they left behind - were scooped up and carried off.

It was, all in all, a nice haul for Lina Inverse.

"That was way too easy," Lina muttered as she and Gourry headed back to the road, her cloak much heavier than it was when they first arrived. "No clich speeches, no insults to my rather magnificent figure, and they gave up rather quickly." She gave an exaggerated sigh. "We're going soft on them, Gourry! They need to be on their edge, ready to face any challenge! A girl likes a little variety in her routine, you know?"

Lina waited for the smartass remark ... that never came. With a grunt, she glared at Gourry, whose eyes she swore looked even more vacant than they tended to be. "Gourry," she said. When no response came, she scowled. "Gourry!"

Still no response.

Throughly annoyed that she was being ignored by her partner of all people, Lina snarled and tripped him up. With a yelp, Gourry landed face first in the dirt - complete with a scraped-up nose and a sore lip from where he accidentally bit it.

"What is with you, Gourry?" Lina demanded, striding in front of him. She placed her hands on her hips and affixed what she felt was her sterned look. "You've been out of it all day! You barely contributed anything to the fight. I mean, really, only disarming 20 men? You at least have their best swordsmen pissing their pants. And, if that wasn't bad enough, you haven't been listening to a word I said! You're not even listening to me now, are you? Gourry!"

Gourry snapped his head up at the sound of his name being screamed in his face. He blinked, then surveyed their surroundings. He really hadn't been paying that much attention to what they were doing. His mind kept drifting back to that strange dream. It had to be a dream. The red-faced screaming sorceress looked nothing like the battle-weary woman who'd passionately kissed him in his dream. Maybe, he thought, the hormones he'd been trying to keep at bay for years were finally getting the best of him.

When he didn't respond, the anger drained from Lina's face. She crouched, shoving her hand under his bangs. "Are you sick?" she asked. "I knew there was something off with that beef tenderloin we ate last night."

"I'm fine," Gourry smiled at her. He closed his eyes and found himself leaning into her touch ... until she jumped to her feet and she tugged on his hair to force him up as well. "Ow, ow, ow!"

"Then where have you been all day? You're nowhere near this empty-headed on a daily basis."

"It's just a dream," Gourry replied, and he forced himself to believe it. "I had a really weird dream."

"Oh?" Intrigued, the last of the anger dissipiated. Lina tilted her head. "What was it about?"

"Nothing." Gourry affectionately ruffled Lina's bangs. "Just a bad dream."

"OK." Not quite believing him, Lina gave up on the matter ... for now. She had ways of making him talk. She started down the road and he fell into step beside her. "It's a good thing we brought in a good haul today." She plucked at the yellow shirt that was far too small for her. She hadn't worn it in a couple of years.

Gourry glanced down at her, and for the first time noticed that her clothes were different. "That shirt makes you actually look like you have breasts."

"Really?" Pleased, Lina puffed out her chest with pride, then snarled. "I should hope this thing's small on me! I got it when I was 13! It's five years old!"

"Then, why are you wearing it now?"

She sighed. "My tunic and leggings shredded when I washed them last night. I think the battle against Luke was the final straw for those clothes."

Gourry plucked at the patched sleeve of the blue shirt he wore. "Yeah, we are pretty hard on clothes."

"Tell me about it." Lina kicked at a pebble and sighed at her boots. Like the rest of her wardrobe, they were also worn and she could tell that the soles were thin. She wasn't that snobby about her wardrobe by any means - but they could afford nicer clothes. "Guess with the whole deal about Luke and Millina, we didn't have time to replace anything."

"Yeah. All my socks have holes in them."

"Mine too." Lina gave Gourry a wry smile. "Your grandma never gave you a lesson on darning socks in all that advice she gave you, did she?"

"Well, she did say to make sure I wound up with a woman who knew how to darn socks." Gourry grinned back at her. "So ... do you?"

Lina snorted. "Hell, no! My sis taught me a lot of things, but she declared that sewing and knitting needles were dangerous projectiles in my case." As Gourry laughed, she bumped hips with him. "Darn your own socks!"

Unconsciously, Gourry draped an arm around Lina's shoulder as they laughed together, tugging her closer. Lina nearly tripped over her own feet in surprise. She nearly called attention to it, but for the first time that day, Gourry didn't look worried. She mentally shrugged and decided to go with the moment. It actually felt pretty nice. Their steps still in time, after a moment, she slipped her arm around his waist and they walked like that together until the next town came into view.

Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж

The town was a fairly good size, and Lina secured them a single large room with twin beds to save extra money for clothes. As they headed out, Lina tossed Gourry a small sack.

"What's this?" he said, weighing it in his hand. He was surprised to feel a good amount of coin in there.

"Your share of the haul. You need clothes too, pal."

Gourry poked the bag open and let out a low whistle. "You never give me this much."

Lina's shoulders stiffened. "I can afford to be generous once in awhile," she muttered under her breath. "Now if you don't want it ..."

Gourry smirked and tucked the bag away. Lina was pretty good about sharing whatever money they came across, but it was usually a 60-40 split. This was definitely a bit more. "Thanks."

"You mean thank you, the most kind and benevolent and beautiful sorceress you've ever met," Lina said with a grand sweep of her arm.

Gourry bit back a laugh. "I wouldn't go that far."

Lina glared. "Which of that isn't true?"

Gourry wisely didn't answer.

They headed to a large tailor shop that also featured ready-made clothing. Lina immediately bypassed the racks of dresses and headed for ... she sighed deeply ... the clothing aimed at young boys. She much preferred to have her clothes custom-made, but they were pretty desperate. Regular men's clothes were far too large for her.

But, as she quickly found out, the boy-sized tunics were finally too small for her.

"About time," Lina told her chest as she made her way back to the women's clothes. She scowled at the dresses. "Nothing, nothing, nothing," she said with a growl, then gave up for the moment. She headed to the men's clothing where Gourry was poking through some shirts. "Find anything?"

"This and that," he replied. He frowned. "I normally don't pay a lot of attention to what I wear."

"I can tell. The blue thing's getting kinda old. What about this?" Lina tugged out a long white sleeveless robe lined with blue and held it up to him.

"It needs to go under my armor. And that's silly." Gourry wrinkled his nose a bit at the garment.

"It can! Look, go try these on." Lina grabbed a pair of trousers off another rack and shoved them in his arms.

"These aren't even my size. And this is practically a dress!"

Lina snarled. "If, you haven't noticed, we're in Zefielia now and men wear these sorts of robes here. Just go with it."

Gourry complied after reaching over Lina's head to snatch a pair of trousers in the correct size.

Lina headed for the clothes aimed at wizards and scholars next and had much better luck there. She found a long robe the color of her old clothes that she liked, and immediately set it aside. She found a long yellow sash and an interesting leather breastplate that was aimed at travelers. She headed back to the boy's clothes for a pair of shorts to counteract the Elemekia weather and picked up a few undershirts from the women's side, then headed to the dressing area to assemble her outfit.

Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж

Gourry emerged from the curtained-off area, tugging at the color of the robe he wore. It wasn't bad. The material was nice and snug where it needed to be, but he felt naked without his armor on. He rolled his shoulders and picked up the breastplate he had stacked neatly with his thigh guards outside the changing area. His armor had taken quite a beating during the fight with Luke, and he doubt that it would hold up much longer.

Something shiny caught his eye, and Gourry noticed there was another shop attached to the tailor. A gauzy curtain hung in the door separated the two. Curious, he pushed aside the curtain and saw hundreds of small gems danging from wooden stands arranged on counters.

"Welcome!" a cheerful voice greeted him. Gourry squinted and saw a small woman perched on a stool on the other end of the room. "Hi!" he told her.

"You must be shopping in my sister's place." The woman scooted off her stool and headed to him. "These are my magical pendants and amulets."

"Magical ... " Gourry's eyes lit up. "Oh, like how Lina says the gems she wears have magic!"

"Exactly!" the woman said. She tapped a cane at some of the pendants, causing them to sway gently. "Only a very talented sorcerer can imbed a powerful enchant in a gem and have it actually work. I do happen to be one of the best."

"Lina's pretty good as well," Gourry told her. "She does stuff like that all the time."

"Oh, ho! And where is this Lina?"

"Think she's trying on clothes ..." Gourry looked over his shoulder, but the curtain had fallen back into place, and he couldn't see into the shop any longer He frowned at his own outfit. "This getup is silly."

"Oh? Come here, young man." The woman beckoned Gourry closer until she could grab a fold of his robe. She rubbed it between two gnarled fingers, then nodded. "This is made of dragon hide. It will protect you as well as that breastplate you stacked outside my room. Tougher than anything. If your girl picked this out for you, she has some sense."

"Really?" Gourry eyed his clothes again with a new perspective. It did seem a bit different from his cloth shirt. A bit heavier than leather, but not bulky like armor either. "But, it's long."

"Men move with long cloaks all the time. You'll be fine." The woman let the robe go. "You're in Zefielia now. Best magic users in the known world. Everything in my sister's shop is enchanted in some way. You won't be without protection by any means."

Feeling a bit better, Gourry looked at the woman's wares. "So, these go with your sister's clothes?" he asked, pointing to one of the displays.

"You can say that. Want something for your Lina?"

Gourry felt his cheeks grow red and found that he couldn't look the woman right in the eye. "Maybe," he conceded after a moment.

"All right." The woman hefted herself onto her feet, leaning heavily on her cane. Gourry moved to assist her, but she waved him off. "Tell me about her," she ordered. "Why are you two together?"

Gourry hesitated a moment. How could he even begin to summarize all that they'd gone through? He couldn't remember it all. He frowned, bit his lip, then finally said, "I promised to protect her for the rest of my life."

"Ah. And your reason for being in Zefielia?"

"Well, Lina's from here, and I suggested we go see her family. It's grape season, you know," he hastily added when the woman arched her eyebrow.

"Boy, you do know what it means to go meet a girl's parents in this country, don't you?"

Gourry nodded and wondered if he was the color of Lina's hair yet.

"Thought so. Here." She plucked two leather strips off a rack and thrust them at him. "I tailor my choices to the wearer and his or her intention. I refuse to sell to anyone with evil in their hearts."

Gourry chuckled and thought of Amelia for a moment. He held up the straps and the world suddenly stopped as he recognized the emerald gems dangling from them. They were the same as in his dream, he realized, laying them in the palm of his hand. It took a moment before he realized the woman was speaking to him. "Sorry," he managed. "What was that?"

"Pay attention, boy," the woman said with a thump of her cane. She pointed at the gems. "Those are for protection. Not only that, but with the right spell on them, you will know when she is in mortal peril and she will know when you are the same. Put a drop of your blood on one, and a drop of hers on the other. Recite the spell, then exchange them. You have access to a sorcerer?"

"Lina does magic."

"Fine. Then give her this." She handed Gourry a piece of paper. "She'll know what to do. Fifty silver, please."

Gourry's head snapped up. "But, I ..."

"They're yours," the woman informed him. "They've been waiting for you. Fifty silver, please."

Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж

"There you are!" Lina bounced off the bench she'd been lounging on when Gourry came back through the curtain. "What was taking you so long? Never mind. Turn around." She lifted her finger and spun it in a circle. Blushing still, Gourry did as told. She paced around him slowly, nodding after a moment. "Premium dragon hide. You'll move easier in that in this climate. I'll cast some spells to make it stronger, maybe add a gem to your belt. What you got there is worth more than any breastplate. Let's pay and go."

Lina spun on her heel and Gourry realized that she was wearing the same outfit from his dream. He opened his mouth, words on the tip of his tongue when the older Lina's voice filled his head. _Gourry, you have to let me go without any questions. Please. To protect both me and the younger Lina sleeping next door._ His mouth automatically snapped shut. He followed her to the store owner, silently handed over money and arranged for his old armor to be scrapped. He followed Lina out with his sword on his back, feeling odd without the breastplate and thighguards. Still, Lina said this was stronger than any armor and he believed her.

"Much better," Lina crooned as the cool air hit her legs. She sighed in relief and beamed with pride at her new breastplate. It gave the effect of having a bit bigger chest - not that she was going to complain. "Let's get some food and ... Gourry?"

Gourry had stopped in the middle of the street. He raised his hand to shield his eyes from the sun and squinted into the distance. "Hey, there's someone coming," he said.

"I imagine so. This is a pretty big retail area for Zefielia."

"No, I mean, someone in a rush. I think that's Saillune's seal on his bag."

"Really?" Intrigued now, Lina joined Gourry and they watched as the rider grew closer and the seal more prominent. He was on a white horse that had been ridden so hard that it was covered in lather. The rider and horse blew by them, then halted, whirled around and came galloping back to them.

"Are you," the rider wheezed, struggling to catch his breath, "are you Lina Inverse?"

Lina and Gourry exchanged a look before Lina replied. "Yeah, I'm Lina Inverse."

"This is for you." He handed a large envelope to her. "From Princess Amelia."

"Amelia!" Lina immediately tore open the envelope. "She never usually ... hmm ..." Her brow furrowed as she read the letter. "How long until they get here?" she asked.

"Even if we depart immediately, they'll already be here when you arrive. But, the princess said that they are willing to wait as long as possible to meet with you."

"Fine, then." Lina folded the letter. "One moment. Might want to water that horse before it collapses."

"Right, Inverse-san." The messenger dismounted, his legs wobbling slightly from being in the saddle so long. As he led the horse to the closest trough, Lina grabbed Gourry's arm and steered him away from the growing crowd. She handed him the letter. "Tell me what you think of this."

Gourry took it and squinted at Amelia's neat handwriting. "She didn't write it in standard," he said and handed it back to Lina.

"No, she didn't. This is old Saillune, a language they don't use very much except for honors, burial rites, things like that. Basically, the letter is informing me that there's a delegation coming from the southern lands and they have reuqested to meet with me."

"Southern lands?"

"Those beyond the barrier." Lina tugged at Gourry's sleeve and pulled him over to a board where news was posted. She tapped on an item. "While we've been searching for a sword for you, countries such as Saillune and the Coastal States have been sending expedition ships to the areas that were once encased in the magical barrier caused by the demon lords. When Phibrizzo was defeated, the barrier fell."

"Why hasn't anyone talked about it?" Gourry wondered.

"We really haven't been anywhere that had an interest in it. Ever since Millina died ... well, we were involved with all that mess involving Luke and the Shabrangidu piece. It's been nearly two years since Phibrizzo fell. Besides, when do you bother listening to the news?"

Gourry laughed. "You have a point!"

Lina rolled her eyes, but grinned at him all the same. "I remember hearing not long before you got the Blast Sword that Saillune had made first contact. But, I also heard that some of those nations were exploring up here themselves - and that they don't use magic."

"Really?" Gourry blinked, surprised. "I thought everywhere had magic users."

"I'm not sure, but I think technology, not magic, is what's prominent outside the barrier. It makes sense. All magic knowledge was contained within the barrier when it was set 1,000 years ago. In any case ... It appears that my reputation has gone beyond the barrier!"

"And, that's a good thing?"

Lina stomped on his foot. "My reputation isn't all bad," she grumbled.

Gourry howled and hopped around on one foot while Lina stomped off to speak with the messenger. He nodded to her, and headed into the inn. Lina whirled around and scowled at Gourry. "We're heading to Saillune in the morning. I paid for that room, and I'm not giving it up. Besides, from here on out, everything's on Prince's Phil's dime." Her expression brightened considerably. "We're going to get a carriage and everything! Ah, the life of luxury! Actually, we might as well test the royal seal now. Let's eat!"


	3. Chapter 2

**Note:** Please note that this story follows the novel storyline of Slayers and derives nothing from the anime, other than an homage to a certain kingdom in this chapter.. As such, technology from beyond the Mazoku border such as cannons, bombs and gunpowder are new concepts to the majority of the cast novel-wise - whereas these were introduced in the second episode of Try and the technology adapted in Saillune in the form of "Jillas cannons" by the time of Revolution/Evolution-R. There is also some liberty taken here in explaining why a landlocked kingdom like Saillune has a navy.

Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж

Vows: Chapter 2

Lina sat at the small table in their room and re-read the letter from Amelia. She kicked back, resting her feet on the table as she translated it again. All the other letters from the princess had been in the common language shared by the nations within the barrier that had developed over the past 1,000 years. She knew it, because she had a thing for languages. As a member of the Saillune royal family, Amelia would be required to know it. It was often used for sending messages in code. Lina straightened. _Code!_

Lina yanked out her reading glasses and took a closer look at the letter. Fifteen minutes later, she had her spellbook out and notes of all the codes she was familiar with spread on the table. She even held the letter up to a candle to see if there was something written on it in secret ink. She was about to give up when she noticed some of the letters appeared strange. She frowned.

Old Saillune was written using different slants for the individual letters. Her eyes widened as she realized that some of them were written as if in standard. She wrote down the letters that were in standard, then consulted one of her code sheets. Another half hour passed, and Lina read the newly revealed message.

"Be careful. Don't come without being appraised of the news."

Lina frowned at the scrap paper she jotted the note on. "What in the world are you trying to say, Amelia?" she murmured. She sighed, crumpled the paper and tossed it in the fire. "What news? Ah well." She glanced at the unoccupied twin bed on the other side of the room. Gourry had disappeared shortly after dinner, and she was surprised he wasn't in bed asleep. Talk about people being weird, she thought as she headed downstairs to find him. Gourry had been acting strange all day, and it was a little creepy.

She didn't find him in the small pub attached to the inn, nor at the restaurant they ate at earlier. She took to the air, scanning the streets and growing more worried until she saw a flash of yellow in a field outside of town. She flew toward the spot, afraid she would find him bloody and battered. But, he was just laying on a wool blanket he'd procured from somewhere, staring at the sky.

Lina landed at Gourry's feet and scowled at him, hands on her hips. "Just what the hell've you been doing?"

"Looking at the stars," Gourry replied, his gaze still on the sky.

Lina sighed and dropped onto the blanket next to him. "You could at least said where you were going." She tilted her head, and her breath caught. "It's beautiful out here."

"Isn't it? Didn't you ever go star-gazing while you were at home?"

"Some, but I don't think I appreciated it as much as I do now." Lina laid back, resting her head on her hands like Gourry was doing. She suddenly flinched. Going to Saillune meant that they weren't going to see her family, and for once, that had been Gourry's choice.

She sidled a glance at him. Gourry really didn't know what it meant to go visit a girl's family ... did he? He'd been oddly insistent about going, but said it was for grapes. Really, they could get good wine just about anywhere. She fidgeted and wondered if she should bring it up. There was no use having him be blindsided by her parents and sister. Then again, who knew how long they'd be in Saillune? Something about Amelia's letter - about the language used and the hidden message - led her to think that something wasn't right.

She levered herself onto one arm. "Hey ... um ... sorry about this. I know you wanted to go meet my folks, but ..."

"It's OK. Amelia needs us, right?"

"Yeah." Lina dropped back down. "She does, I think." She filled him in on the code she discovered. "We need to figure out what news she's talking about."

"Weren't you saying something about expeditions?" Gourry finally looked at her.

"True. It's a safe assumption to start there. Maybe that messenger knows something." Lina mulled it over. "No use fretting over it now. We'll have a few days to figure out what's going on, and Amelia will clue us in."

"Yeah, suppose."

Pushing the matter from her mind, Lina turned her attention back to the stars. It was nights like this that she was amazed that she was still alive. Not just alive, but healthy and happy. Her thoughts drifted to Luke and Millina. She hadn't cried for them, not since that horrible night when Memphis and Milgasia had wanted to know the outcome of the battle, and Gourry urged her to let go. She had cried, his hand cupping her cheek the entire time, his thumb stroking away the tears as he held her other hand.

She really was lucky. She'd channeled the Mother of all Beings and survived. She'd survived two battled with Shabranigudu fragments, Dynast, Gaav, Phibrizzo and more. Still, part of her wished that she could have done something - anything - so it was Luke and Millina sitting under the stars together. Who knows, she thought wryly, maybe they'd actually get it together.

She knew there was something painfully ironic in that statement.

_Life is what you make of it._ Lina found herself looking at Gourry once more, and felt the final piece slide into place and click as if it had been there all along. Her breath hitched, then smoothed again. She never imagined the moment she'd realize what had most likely been apparent all along would be this quiet, this simple. The corners of her mouth quirked. This non-dramatic. Amelia would be disappointed. _Maybe I'm just growing up. We've been together for nearly three years now._ And, somehow, this new line of thinking didn't terrify her the way that it once would. She gave the heavens a wry smile. _Suppose I have you to thank for that, Luke._

She took several deep breaths, testing her newly realized emotions, then decided she was comfortable enough to talk. "See any good constellations?" she asked.

Gourry scratched at his cheek. "I don't really know any."

"How can you not know any? Geez, look." Lina pointed at the North Star. "You know the North Star, right?"

"Of course. Even I know that."

"You're not half the idiot I thought you were. OK, follow my finger to the south ... there, see that bright star diagonal to it?"

"Yeah?"

"Follow it around." Lina pointed to the different stars, sketching out a shape in the sky. "It's called the Northern Dipper. See? It's shaped like a water dipper."

Gourry gave her a puzzled look. "It just looks like stars to me."

"Use your imagination! Imagine there's lines connecting those stars. What do you see then?"

"Uh ... stars?"

Lina snarled, reaching for her slipper before she remembered that she'd left it in their room. "Try imagining a little harder," she growled. _Why did I decide I had feelings for this idiot again?_

"But, why would I want to?"

"Because it's fun," Lina replied. She sighed. "You just don't get it, do you? Constellations are often used to teach about different historic events and figures. Did you pay attention in school at all?"

"I never went to school." Gourry shifted his focus back to the sky.

Somehow, that didn't surprise Lina. Private education was the realm of the rich, or at least landed gentry. She'd suspected for awhile that Gourry, due to his heritage with the Sword of Light, had at least come from a knight's household. "Who taught you to read?"

"My mom did." He glanced at her. "After my dad died, we stayed with my grandma, and she taught me more."

In two sentences, Gourry had told her more about his past than she'd ever heard before. Curiosity piqued, Lina carefully weighed her next question. "When did that happen?" she asked.

"When I was eleven." He fidgeted nervously, and Lina knew they were treading into very sore territory. Still ... "Is your mom still alive?"

"No," he snapped and she immediately clamped her mouth shut. "I'm sorry," she said quietly.

"It's OK." He smiled at her, the same bright, sunny smile he'd always given her, and for the first time she wondered what all he was hiding behind it. He reached over and started running his hand through her hair. It felt good, and she remembered a similar time when he had told her that he didn't need a reason to travel with her. Traveling aimlessly ... that was fine for both of them. It hadn't been all that long ago.

She closed her eyes, leaning into his touch. Instinctively, she shifted closer until she was tucked against his side and his arm supported her neck. They stayed like that, curled into each other and gazing at the stars. When exhaustion overtook her, she shifted, resting her head on his chest. As she fell asleep with Gourry's strong, steady heartbeat in her ear, Lina hoped that in the afterlife, Luke had found Millina at last.

Gourry stayed awake a bit longer, staring at the sky and fighting back the worry that had driven him on his walk in the first place. The weight of the two small stones in his pocket pressed against his thigh, a constant reminder that he needed to give them to her and explain what they were for. Something about this trip unsettled him, but it probably had to do with the weird dream he'd had the night before the letter came.

No, he corrected himself, it wasn't a dream. It couldn't be a dream. Lina was now wearing the exact same clothes as the future Lina wore. The bracelet she'd had was in his pocket. He wasn't sure how far in the future she'd come from. Lina would know, the Lina sitting across from him. But, he couldn't tell her. What if he said something and that caused the future to change? He'd gone back and forth on it. If he told Lina now, maybe they could prevent this war. Or, maybe it'd make things worse. No matter what though, Gourry had promised Lina not to breathe a word. It was killing him not to tell her. Other than his family, he'd never kept anything from her. It's to protect her, he told himself. She'll understand whenever that time comes.

Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж

The trip to Saillune City took roughly a week. As the hired carriage rolled through the streets of Saillune's capitol, Lina peered through the dusty windows. It'd been roughly two years since she and Gourry had last been here, when they escorted Sylphiel to stay with her grandparents after her father's death at the hands of Copy Rezo. At the time, the king had been gravely ill and Prince Phil the target of assassins.

"Strange," Lina muttered to herself. From the impression she got from the messenger, the expedition from the southern lands was suppose to be a big deal. Yet, there was nothing indicating that the city was preparing for such a visit. Whenever an official visit from neighboring royalty passed through Zefielia, all the cities and towns along the route were required to hang streamers and have week-long celebrations. But, not here, she mused. It was almost like Saillune was trying to hide the fact that this visit was even happening.

She thought of the cryptic message that Amelia had written. She tried to pump the messenger for more information and kept her ear to the ground as they traveled, listening for any more news from the southern lands. Absolutely nothing. It was bugging her more and more by the day, and the closer they got to the palace, the more unsettled Lina felt.

The carriage paused at the front gates, which were even more secured than the day Lina and Gourry had escorted Phil from hiding back to his rightful place at the palace. Gourry had joined Lina in looking out the window at that point.

"It's almost like they're preparing for war," he observed.

"It does, doesn't it?"

The carriage rolled to a stop, and Lina was out the door almost as soon as it stilled. She carefully surveyed the area. Guards were posted at every entrance to the buildings around the palace grounds, even the temple. The air was still, tense. No one said a word to either of them, their focus instead on something in the distance that Lina couldn't quite see.

"Well, looks like the welcome wagon forgot to greet us," Lina observed as the messenger climbed off his perch next to the rider.

"I apologize for that, Inverse-san. I sent word ahead that we were arriving today. I'll have one of the soldiers escort you to ..."

"Save it, I know where we're heading." Lina spun on her heel and headed toward the temple, with Gourry quickly following suit. They walked past the stiff, silent guards and into the cool sanctuary. The main room was a large dome-like area, with a section dedicated to prayer. Lina put out her hand to stop Gourry from proceeding any further. "Prayers," she murmured under her breath. "They have them several times a day."

The priestesses had gathered around the statue to Ceiphied, their voices reciting prayers in the same ancient language that Amelia had written her letter to Lina on.

"It's a standard prayer asking for the dragon god Ceiphied to protect the kingdom," Lina translated for Gourry's benefit. "They thank the dragon god for keeping the Mazoku away and also ask for blessings and guidance for the king and his successors." King Eldoran, from what Lina recalled, was still hanging in there.

The end of the prayers came and went. The priestesses kept reciting something Lina hadn't heard of before, but what they were saying made her blood run cold.

"Lina?" Gourry prompted her as her face went pale. "What's wrong?"

"They're asking for Ceiphied's protection in the lands that have been conquered by southern invaders and to come save Saillune in its hour of need," Lina replied. "Damn it, I haven't been paying attention."

"It doesn't look like Saillune's getting attacked to me," Gourry said, looking around at the soldiers. "They're nervous, yeah, but the kingdom's landlocked isn't it?"

"Yes and no. A long time ago, Saillune also included what's now the Alliance of Coastal States," Lina explained. "So, they had a water border to the south and a pretty respectable navy. When the states seceded from Saillune, they forged a treaty that guaranteed that Saillune could still maintain a navy as long as said navy continued to provide protection for the costal states and not try to take them back. It's worked fairly well up to this point."

The priestesses had risen from their prayers, but Lina did not see Amelia among them. She did, however, spot a familiar-looking woman in elegant robes with long, dark hair cascading down her back. She quickly raised her hand. "Hey, Sylphiel!"

The priestess turned, her lovely eyes lighting up at the sight of them. "Lina-san! Gourry-sama!" She quickly made her way over to them, her bright smile the first genuine expression of emotion Lina had seen since they entered the palace grounds. She approached them, then bowed deeply. "Amelia-san said that the two of you were coming. It's good to see you both. You look well."

"Thanks, you too," Lina replied. The last time they'd seen her was shortly after Phibrizzo's defeat. She waited for Sylphiel to blush or making some sort of endearing comment to Gourry ... but none came. Instead, Sylphiel beckoned them toward a hallway that led away from the worship area.

"I do apologize if no one has properly greeted you yet," Sylphiel said as they headed down the hallway. "Grandfather has been meeting with Prince Phil non-stop, and Amelia-san mostly stays in the castle now. She's in charge of making sure aid gets down to the coastal states and just returned from an expedition there herself." She opened an elegant wood-paneled door and stood aside so they could go in first.

Sylphiel had led them to small, but well-appointed living quarters, Lina realized. They stood in a neat sitting room. An open door to one side gave her a glimpse of an equally small and tidy bedroom. Sylphiel reached for a bell pull and pulled it. "Tea should be coming shortly. Won't you sit, please?"

"Hey, this is nice, Sylphiel," Gourry said, looking genuinely happy for her.

"Thank you, Gourry-sama," Sylphiel said without a hint of a blush. She took one of the chairs and Gourry immediately sprawled on the sofa. Lina hesitated, her gaze shifting warily between Sylphiel, Gourry and the empty spot on the sofa next to Gourry. She decided that standing was a better idea for now.

"It's only temporary," Sylphiel was telling Gourry. Now she blushed. "I'm to be married in three months."

"Congratulations!" Gourry said with pride and Lina found herself dropping onto the couch next to Gourry. "So, who's the lucky guy?" he asked.

"He's one of the royal librarians. He was helping me research some material on old Sairaag an we formed a friendship."

"Great. Congrats," Lina said breezily. "We have our small talk out of the way. What's going on here, Sylphiel?"

Sylphiel smiled. "You never change, Lina-san." Her face sobered. "Amelia-san said you two were involved in a serious issue regarding Mazoku, and I had heard reports that the two of you were seen in Sairaag not all that long ago. What do you know about the expeditions to the southern lands?"

"Only that they were taking place. Joint thing between Saillune and the coastal states."

"Yes, that's right." Sylphiel laced her fingers together, then slowly pulled them apart. "We had contact with the ships from one of those lands, also on a similar expedition. The only way we knew about that contact was that they got off a communicate spell linked to one of the orbs at the palace before the ship sank."

"Sank?" Lina leaned forward slightly and frowned. "Did they attack them?"

"No. They never had a chance." Sylphiel wrung her hands a bit. "I'm not quite sure of the technology, Zelgadiss-san knows that better."

"Oh! So, he's here too?"

"Yes. His travels took him to the southern lands as well, and Prince Phil sent for him as well. They did something involving a non-magic explosive, that's all we know. We never heard from the crew again. That was four months ago. A month later, one of those ships arrived at the ports in Ralfaga, one of the outlying islands that was just inside the barrier. The survivors said that the ships used the same sort of explosives - no magic at all."

"If they weren't using magic," Gourry asked, "what were they using?"

"Zelgadiss-san called them 'cannons.' They used a strange mixture called 'gunpowder' that allows them to shoot large metal balls into walls and ships to sink them."

"I've heard vaguely about them," Lina said. "There was some experimentation to that effect as a means of targeting Mazoku more than a thousand years ago. Then the barrier went up and magic quickly overtook that sort of technology." She sat back and frowned. "Who would be insane enough to use that sort of primitive technology against magic? Magic wins every time."

"Ralfaga did not have a lot of magic users," a new voice said from the door.

Lina and Gourry peered over the sofa to see Zelgadiss standing in the doorway, a tray of tea in his hands. "Hey, Zel! Playing servant on the side?"

"Very funny," he said dryly and placed the tray on the small table in front of the sofa. "You were spotted accompanying Sylphiel to her rooms. Amelia should be along any second ..."

"Lina-san!" A joyous squeal came from the door, and before Lina could react, she had her arms full of excited princess. Amelia squeezed her hard, then did the same thing for Gourry. "You're both safe! I heard what happened with your friend ... I'm so sorry. You two look fine, and I love your clothes!"

"Thanks, Amelia," Lina said with a genuine smile. Amelia had grown a couple of inches in the years since she'd seen her last. She now stood slightly above Zelgadiss's shoulders. The chimera looked the same as when she last saw him, but stood quite at ease at the princess's shoulder. Lina's eyebrow winged up. _Well, well, did something happen between those two lately?_

"I was telling Lina-san what was going on," Sylphiel explained.

"I deciphered your code," Lina told Amelia, "but I didn't find out much on my way here."

"No news at all?"

"None."

Amelia and Zelgadiss exchanged a worried look. "It's like you feared," he said to her.

"No one is expecting a thing," Amelia replied, biting her lip.

"Hello!" Lina waved her hand at them. "Expecting what? Just cut to the chase!"

"I wanted you to find out whatever news you could, because I wanted to see if the other kingdoms were aware of what was going on," Amelia explained. "You not finding anything confirms our worse fears that no one outside of Saillune is aware of this issue."

Her temper was fraying fast. Lina almost massaged her temples out of frustration - and the urge to smack some sense into them. "Just what is the issue?" she ground out

"There's a country who used to be closely linked to the barrier lands," Zelgadiss said. "In the thousand years since the Kouma Sensou, the kingdom pioneered new technology that caused them to be quite efficient. They used to have magic, but thanks to the barrier, it died away. They've always been resentful of that and vowed to extinguish magic, no matter what the cost. I happened to find my way into one of the kingdom's larger cities during my travels and barely escaped with my life when they found out I was a magic user."

"Around this time" Amelia continued, "our expedition ships were attacked. Zelgadiss-san informed me of what happened to him in one of his letters, and Daddy sent for him. Not long after Zelgadiss-san got here, Ralfaga was attacked and taken over. We've sent out naval ships to try to negotiate with them ... but they never came back."

"Three weeks ago, I was out on a walk with my fiancé when we saw a trio of strangely dressed men arrive at the palace," Sylphiel said. "They really didn't know our common language ... but they knew old Saillune. I'd been studying the language, so I took them to see Amelia-san and Prince Phil. They identified themselves as being from Deme, the kingdom that Zelgadiss-san had encountered."

"They made it pretty clear that their intentions were to declare war on the barrier lands and said that at that time, the kingdom of Taforashia was in the process of being taken over. Zelgadiss-san confirmed it for us." Amelia bowed her head and the joy she'd shown earlier was gone. "We explained that Saillune fights for justice and peace ... we will do whatever it takes to win back freedom for Ralfaga and Taforashia. We're actually providing sanctuary to the crown prince of that country, Posel."

"This is ridiculous," Lina informed them, throwing up her hands. "They don't use magic! Look, is that what you want me here for? A couple of Dragon Slaves and they'll go slinking back to their podunk kingdom that apparently has a huge stick up its ass? Fine, I'll do it. But, it's going to cost you."

"That's not exactly it, Lina," Zelgadiss said. "When they attacked Taforashia, they had a device that neutralized all the magic in the kingdom. Almost like when your magic was sealed, except we're pretty sure that it's not caused by a Mazoku."

"So, they're sealing away everyone's magic, then taking over the kingdom?" Gourry asked.

"Taforashia was the victim of a vicious epidemic of durum disease a few years back," Lina told him. "As far as I know, they have very few defenses to speak of. I doubt they could get hold of a good mercenary army in time. While an army is all well and good, and don't pout Gourry, a nation's defenses lie in its magic. All kingdom defenses include the best magic-users. If they have large explosives to blow away an army, and then have something to neutralize the magic users ... even a kingdom like Saillune or Zefielia could fall." She turned her attention back to Amelia. "So, where do we come in?"

"We asked the Deme representatives what we could do to stop a war," Amelia said. "They asked to meet with you."


	4. Chapter 3

**Note:** Lina and Gourry's outfits are based off a by Japanese artist FMK. Lina's encounter with the Deme ambassador was inspired by "A Conspiracy of Kings" by Megan Whalen Turner, who has master the art of subtly in writing. Many thanks goes to Earth Star for betaing this chapter!

Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж

Vows: Chapter 3

Lina was quite sure this was a set up for catastrophe.

"Some party," Lina dolefully muttered as she and Gourry stood on one of the palace balconies, watching as the upper crust of Saillune society mingled and made small talk as they sampled tiny appetizers. Her stomach rumbled and she pressed a hand to her satin-covered gut. She was starving, but Amelia had withheld all real food until they met with the Deme ambassadors.

"We don't need their first impression of you to be eating like you're in a pig sty," Amelia had informed her.

"We have manners! Don't we, Gourry?"

"We do?"

Lina yanked out her slipper and smacked Gourry with it. "You're not paying attention!" she yelled, preparing to smack him again when Amelia had snatched it away.

"Lina-san," Amelia said, exasperated, "could you at least try to act like a lady for a couple of hours? Please?"

So here they were. The sorceress clad in a borrowed pink dress hastily tailored to accommodate her chest - or the lack thereof compared to the crown princess - and the swordsman in a handsome dark suit that someone snagged off a rack for him at the same time one was purchased for Zelgadiss.

Lina groused as she glanced at Gourry, who was looking out over the palace grounds, his arms propped on the balcony railing. He'd made out like a prince, she thought a bit sourly. The suit was elegant and fit his long, lean body well. His hair had been caught back in an elegant braid, and she'd seen more than one eligible woman giving him appreciative looks which caused Lina to growl in their direction until they scurried some place to hide. It was, she told herself, a reflexive action. It didn't mean anything at all, and certainly wasn't related to the thoughts she was having before they left for Saillune. Right? Right.

Lina heaved a sigh. "Those guys need to hurry up and get here so I can eat. What're you looking at?"

"Those two guys in black sneaking along the palace wall."

Lina instinctively began to whirl around, but Gourry's hand snaked out and caught her arm. "Don't be obvious," he warned her.

"I'm not being that obvious." Lina settled back in her former position, annoyed that Gourry was the one with common sense this time. She definitely needed food to get back in top form. She snatched a glass of champagne off a server's tray as he passed by, pressed it to her lips but didn't drink. "What do you see?" she asked under her breath.

"They're really good, better than you and I when we snuck in." Gourry's mouth twitched as Lina snorted. _Of all the things for him to remember ..._ "They scaled the wall about five minutes ago, and it looks like they're trying to head for the temple."

"Long way around. Probably going for Phil and Amelia. Let's go check it out." Lina put her untouched champagne down.

Gourry frowned at her. "Isn't Amelia going to notice you're missing?"

"Amelia is going to kiss my feet once she realizes I've saved her royal ass again. C'mon." Lina tugged on Gourry's arm.

"But, I don't have my sword."

"You're a smart guy. Use something else."

Gourry scanned the refreshment table and scooped up a couple of shrimp forks. "I'm starting to wonder if you know what you're doing," he said as he followed Lina toward the gardens.

"Why wouldn't I know what I'm doing?"

"You just called me 'smart.'"

Lina snorted and shoved open the gate. "Okay," she said as she and Gourry walked out, "we don't want to arouse too much suspicion." She wove her arm through his. "We need to act like we're taking a casual stroll through the gardens. We stumble across the assassins. Gasp! Shriek! Fireball! And, maybe I'll let you do something with those shrimp forks."

Gourry gave her an exasperated look. "Maybe?"

Lina smiled and patted his arm. "I'm sure it won't dent your ego too much if you sat out on the action this time."

"With you around, I'm beginning to wonder if I have any left."

"Don't worry, Gourry. I'll be sure to protect you and your shrimp forks from the big bad boogey monster."

"I'm sure you could, Lina." He reached over and ruffled her hair affectionately. "Just tell me one thing."

"What's that?"

"Is it that time of month?"

Lina growled and stomped hard on Gourry's foot, the heel of the dress shoe easily puncturing his loafers. He winced and whined a bit, trying to hop on one foot while not losing his balance. Lina laughed in response, sticking her tongue at him as he grumbled under his breath.

They strolled along the path, teasing each other while at the same time keeping aware of their surroundings. They'd wandered toward the temple, then back toward the brightly lit palace.

"I don't see them any longer," Gourry said, casually surveying the area.

"No, and that worries me." Lina started to lead them back toward the palace. "If they got as far as the palace, Zel's hovering around Amelia like a mother hen. He won't let anything happen to Phil or Amelia. Still, I'd feel better if ..." She cut off as Gourry suddenly stopped, causing her to nearly trip over her feet. She whirled around, ready to yell when she saw him squinting into the distance. "What is it?" she asked.

"Over there." Gourry grabbed a handkerchief from his pocket and shoved it in her hand before sprinting off.

"What the ... what am I suppose to do with this, Gourry?" Lina followed, cutting through the trees until she nearly slammed into his back ... at the same time as the overwhelming stench of fresh death hit her. Coughing, she held the handkerchief over her mouth and nose. She was no stranger to death, but she loathed the stench of a fresh kill. She took a couple of breaths through her mouth until she got used to the smell, then crumpled the handkerchief in her hand.

Gourry moved in front of her, brandishing the two shrimp forks like a sword as he scanned the area. After a moment, he relaxed and stepped aside so she could see the body. "Whoever did this is gone," he told her as Lina spread the handkerchief out and knelt on it so she wouldn't mar Amelia's dress.

He was dressed in black from head to foot, but it was an elegant in a vastly different fashion from what she was familiar with. He had olive-toned skin and dark hair and was probably quite handsome if not for the smoking hole in his chest and the blood splattered everywhere. Lina swore beneath her breath and got to her feet. "I think this was one of our 'honored guests.'"

Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж

Lina considered it lucky that she and Gourry had found the body, and not one of the other dinner guests. The last thing they needed was for someone to go shrieking their way into the reception and cause a big mess. Gourry stayed with the body while she flew to the castle and got Zelgadiss.

She didn't think someone with stone skin could go pale, but he proved her wrong. "Are you sure?" he asked in a brusque tone as they headed swiftly through the palace halls toward Prince Phil's chambers.

"You don't see many overly tanned people within the barrier lands," Lina explained. "Darker skin, but not black. Clothes are a different style too, different material. Lighter ... maybe some form of cotton? I'm no expert on that."

"Linen," Zelgadiss replied. "Probably a linen blend. It's what I saw in the Deme city."

"In any case, this is going to cause a huge stink."

"That's putting it mildly." They swung around the corner together. "I've had Amelia go with her father for now. They're suppose to be meeting with the Deme folk."

Lina had never been in Phil's private apartments, but considered them to be the definition of "bachelor's quarters." A bachelor with an insatiable lust for justice, she thought as she caught sight of elaborate tapestries depicting various heroic battles she recognized from Saillune literature. Plush, but well-used leather furniture was arranged around the room along with a couple of tables littered with papers and books.

Phil rose to his feet, along with Amelia as Zelgadiss and Lina entered the room. The man who sat on the sofa across from them did not bother to rise. He was dressed in the same sort of outfit as the dead man. Similar facial structure, eyes, hair color, Lina assessed. Twins? No. Siblings? Most likely.

"Lina-dono," Phil said, "thank you for joining us." He indicated the man with a sweep of his hand. "This is Ambassador Marseil from the kingdom of Deme."

"Lina Inverse," she replied, eyeing him warily.

Now Marseil rose to his feet, inclining his head toward her in a way that made her spine crawl. "Miss Inverse," he said. "And, it is good to see you again, Mr. Greywords."

"Honorific beyond the barrier," Zelgadiss translated under his breath. "Given to the status of a young, unmarried woman."

"So I see," Lina replied, then raised her voice. "Well, Marseil-_san_, what can I do for you?"

"Miss Inverse, I'm not quite sure what I've done that's offended you to the point that you would address me in such a contrary tone," Marseil told her in a light, but scolding tone, but without the heavy accent she'd been expecting. He also spoke the standard language, in contrast to the old Saillune that Sylphiel had heard him speak. "I am simply here to meet a woman that these countries consider a 'treasure.'"

"You must forgive Lina-san," Amelia quickly said. "She and Gourry-san recently traveled a long way after recovering from some grave injuries."

An eyebrow winged up. "Oh? Might I inquire as to how you received such wounds?"

"It was nothing," Lina dismissed the question, took a deep breath and dredged up every ounce of diplomacy at her disposal. She pasted on what she hoped was a smile.

"Amelia," Zelgadiss spoke up, "might I have a word with you?"

"Of course, Zelgadiss-san." Amelia rose. "Pardon me a moment."

Zelgadiss took her arm, steering her toward a corner of the room. Lina kept her gaze on them as he murmured in her ear. Amelia's eyes went wide, her cheeks pale. Both of them gave Lina a nervous look.

"You seem preoccupied, Miss Inverse."

Lina studied her opponent. "You're quite nosy, aren't you?"

Marseil sat back with an elaborate goblet in hand. "Merely interested in the affairs of those within the lands that were once sealed off to us."

"Interested in them to the point where you decided to attack a defenseless kingdom?" Lina challenged. "I'm fully aware of what your troops have done to Taforashia and Ralfaga."

"A misunderstanding, just as I was explaining to Prince Philionel. As we were discussing prior to your entrance, both countries were in need of aid from raiders. We graciously offered our assistance to our neighbors north of the barrier, and as a courtesy, kept a small detachment of troops stationed there until further assistance could be procured. As you can see, we do show great mercy."

"Is that so?" Lina narrowed her eyes. "I hear that your kingdom doesn't care for magic."

"That is correct," Marseil acknowledged. "After the sudden rendering of our magical capabilities a thousand years ago, our kingdom thrived. We worked for centuries to perfect technology and non-magical ways of defending ourselves. We are a peaceful kingdom, Miss Inverse, and have experienced great fortune. It would be remiss if we didn't share that abundance with our deprived neighbors to the north."

"Saillune is a peaceful kingdom itself," Phil boasted. "As you can see, we also enjoy great prosperity."

"I see ..." Marseil eyed his wine with disdain and Lina saw anger flash in Amelia's eyes before Zelgadiss laid a hand on her arm.

_Something is definitely going on with those two,_ Lina thought, remembering what she'd seen between them the previous evening.

"I do admit, it is a quaint place. A throwback to an era gone-by." Marseil toasted Phil and finished off his wine.

"Lina-san?"

Lina shook her head at Amelia's voice, hoping she would take the cue. "I heard that there was more than one of you here."

Now she saw the worry creep, just slightly, into Marseil's eyes. "Yes, Ambassador Levant had to send a dispatch and was suppose to meet me here. It is why we are regrettably late in getting to make your acquaintance, Miss Inverse."

"I'll be happy to send some guards to escort the ambassador to the palace," Phil offered.

"I'll personally see to that for you, Prince Phil," Zelgadiss spoke up.

Phil beamed at Zelgadiss while Lina shot him an odd look. He normally didn't speak with the polish of a royal, but ... he's buying me time. Thanks, Zel. "Amelia, my dear, would you go with him?"

"Of course, Father." Amelia inclined her head. "I request that Lina-san come with us as well. That way, she can make her introductions to the ambassador, and we can all retire for the evening. Shall we convene in the morning?"

"Excellent plan. What say you, Ambassador Marseil?"

"I believe Ambassador Levant will greatly appreciate the gesture." Marseil rose and approached Lina. She braced to defend herself, and was surprised when he kissed the air above both of her cheeks and bowed. He repeated the move to Amelia and shook Zelgadiss and Phil's hands. Phil waved to a couple of guards to escort Marseil to his room.

Once the door closed behind him, Amelia's composure vanished. "Lina-san! Why didn't you tell him?"

"Tell him?" Phil asked.

"Lina and Gourry found a man that appears to be Ambassador Levant. He's dead. Point-blank magical wound to the chest," Zelgadiss told him.

Phil swore. "Lina-dono ..."

"Don't you dare go thinking for even a second that I did it," Lina shot at him.

"I didn't think that," he replied. "I'm afraid that once this comes out, it will have grave consequences for Saillune."

Lina placed a hand on her hip. "Guy doesn't think much of Saillune, does he?"

"No. And, as far as he knows, we've had no contact from Taforashia. He doesn't realize that Zelgadiss and Amelia smuggled the prince out."

Lina's eyebrow winged up. That was news to her as well. Still ... "I don't know about that, Phil-san. Sylphiel said yesterday that the ambassadors didn't know how to speak common all that well, yet Marseil spoke it perfectly fine tonight."

"I noticed that as well," Zelgadiss confirmed and Amelia nodded.

"You have a point. Still, he doesn't know where Posel-san is, and we plan to keep it that way," Phil said. "Still, why didn't you say anything when you got here, Lina-san?"

"Call it a hunch. Anyhow, let's go. Gourry's out there with the body, and someone's bound to start poking around sooner or later.

Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж

When the bushes rustled, Gourry rose from his seated crouch next to a tree. "Lina?"

The bushes stopped and he heard footsteps rushing away in the opposite direction. Swearing under his breath, he quickly sidestepped the body and pursued the person. It didn't take him long to catch up, and he snagged the person's cloak. "Wait, it's OK! I'm not going to hurt you!"

The person struggled, then whirled around. He saw that it was a woman with large, terrified eyes, her messy blonde hair spilling over a shoulder. She wasn't dressed like one of the party-goers, Gourry thought as he smiled warmly at her. She wore a pink dress the same shade as Lina's, but it was longer and filthy. A tattered white cloak hung from her shoulders. "It's OK, miss. I know it was a shock, but my friend went for help."

The woman gulped in air and hugged herself. "He's dead, isn't he?" she managed after a moment.

"Yeah. But, whoever killed him won't kill you." Gourry placed his hands on the woman's shoulders and found himself studying the stranger. She was so thin and she was shaking like a leaf. "I promise that. Why don't I escort you back to the party?"

The woman let out a shrill laugh. "You got that right. The killer wouldn't dare harm me ... it doesn't mean that I won't get hurt."

The light was dim, but Gourry could see the bruises under the woman's right eye. His fingers dug through to the bone and he was barely touching her shoulders. Anger surged at whoever did this to her, and he pushed it away. She didn't need to see that, but he instantly loathed anyone that could do this to a woman.

"Do you need help?" he asked her, wondering how he could get her to Sylphiel without being noticed.

The woman blinked once, then twice. "You'd help me?"

"Someone hurt you."

Tears welled in her eyes. "Would you still help me, even knowing what I've done ... what I'm about to do?"

"I can't just leave you like this." Gourry smiled at her once more. "My grandmother would rise out of her grave and smack me with her frying pan if she found out I ever abandoned a woman in need."

"You have to do so." The woman pulled away from Gourry's hold and she looked to him the way Lina did before making a truly hard decision that wound up having them plunged into battle. She hesitated, then fixed her eyes on him. "You love Lina Inverse."

Gourry's jaw fell open.

"I ... There's been copious amounts of research done on you. Her too. I know who you are, Mr. Gabriev. I ... I can't stop what's going to happen, but if you truly love her the way that I think you do, you have to do whatever it takes to protect her."

Gourry froze, his mind instantly snapping back to the future Lina standing in his inn room a couple weeks earlier saying that he needed to protect both the future and past her. "Wait a minute, where are you from?"

"I can't tell you any more. You can't know. Just please, don't let Lina Inverse be killed. She's your only hope to save this kingdom." The woman took two steps, then pulled back around. "You're a very kind man, Mr. Gabriev. I won't forget it."

She took off, casting a spell that let her take to the air before Gourry could pursue her again. Frustrated, he whirled around and punched at the closest tree, surprised when his fists didn't meet bark. He loosened his grip and saw the shrimp forks were embedded in the tree.

"Oh, come on," he said aloud, "I know my brain's full of yogurt, but give me a break here!"

"What the hell are you doing, Gourry?"

He turned to find a pissed Lina standing a few feet away, hands on her hips. She looked so furious, so alive, that Gourry was sure he would had done something had Amelia not chosen that moment to follow Lina out of the bushes.

"There you are," Amelia said, her gaze flickering from Lina to Gourry to the shrimp forks in the trees. She pursed her lips and decided silence was the wisest choice for now. "Zelgadiss-san is escorting the soldiers with the body to the temple right now."

"OK then, let's go." Lina quickly followed her.

Gourry started to follow, then looked back one last time at the spot where he'd stopped the strange woman.

_Wait a minute ... when she flew away ... did she have a tail?_

"Gourry! Get your rear in gear!"

He sprinted to catch up with Lina and Amelia.

Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж•Ж

"Lina-san," Amelia said as they headed back to the palace, "you came to speak with Marseil-san about finding Levant-san's body, didn't you? Why didn't you bring it up?"

"I wanted to get a better handle on what he wants." Lina stated as she replayed the conversation in her mind, picking apart the rhetoric that Marseil had spewed. "He hates magic, that much I'm sure of. When he finds out that Levant's been murdered, he's not going to take too kindly to it."

"I saw the wound. Point-blank to the chest." Amelia shook her head. "What a horrible way to go."

"But quick. We need to figure out who has a grudge against the Demes, and fast. Say, you said you're sheltering the prince of Taforashia, right?"

Amelia didn't respond until the three had locked themselves into Lina's room. "Posel-san is in this wing," she confided. "Zelgadiss-san and I snuck him into the palace before we knew the ambassadors were coming. It's the safest place for him at this time."

"That so?" Lina sat on her bed while Gourry took the chair. "Did he know about tonight?"

"Yes. We've kept him abreast of everything."

"Does he know magic?"

"Yes, Posel-san is quite ..." Amelia's voice trailed off as she realized what Lina was implying. "Lina-san! You can't possibly be accusing Posel-san of murdering the ambassador!"

"And why not?" Lina counted on her fingers. "The Demes have taken over his country. That raiders story was a bunch of bull, and you know it. He knows magic. No one knows he's here, and are his rooms guarded?"

"Well, no, but ..."

"Means, motive, and opportunity, Amelia. The three basics of any murder mystery and you know it. Sounds like our little prince has all three."

"He's 12, Lina-san!"

Lina pinned her with a steely glare. "I was casting the Dragon Slave at 11."

"Lina," Gourry said tiredly.

"Fine, fine. I'll back off. But, Amelia, even you have to admit that Posel has a good reason to go after the Demes."

Amelia looked a little sad. "I suppose you're right. We'll go talk to him in the morning. Zelgadiss-san and the guards are making sure the body is sequestered inside the temple. We can't hide the fact of what happened, but we can try to delay it a little. We'll let him know after we talk with Posel-san."

It meant they would only get a few hours of sleep, and Lina resigned herself to it. "OK then. We'll go eat breakfast with the prince."

"Very well." Amelia placed her hand on the knob. It tightened, then she gave Lina a firm look. "If Posel-san had anything to do with this, it's because he's thinking of his people. But ... I hope, for all of our sakes, that he didn't do this. Good night."

After the door clicked shut behind Amelia, Lina collapsed onto the bed, luxuriating in the soft mattress. She kicked off the hated heels and groaned with relief as she flexed her feet. She heard the door open and shut, but her mind was already drifting into slumber. She barely registered her door reopening, but was instantly alert when she heard the click of the lock.

She levered herself on her elbows and saw it was only Gourry, sword sheath in hand. He placed it on the table before stripping off the suit jacket. "Pal, your room is next door."

"Yeah, but I'm sleeping in here tonight." He kicked off the loafers, dispensed of the tie and unbuttoned the first few buttons of the dress shirt.

"Aren't you being a little paranoid?"

"Considering our luck with this place?"

Oh irony, Lina thought wryly. Gourry was right. The last time they'd been in Saillune, they'd been lucky to get out with their lives. "Point. Well, get on up here. Last thing we need is you getting something sliced off because you have a crick in your neck." She rolled off the bed and ducked behind the changing screen to change into pajamas.

They settled in their usual positions for when they had to share a bed - she was under the covers and he on top, he was closest to the door and she to the window, the Blast Sword propped against the nightstand where Gourry could grab it within a second of waking should he need it. Unlike their usual cramped quarters, the bed they occupied was so large that they lay comfortably and still had plenty of room between them.

Neither of them slept.


End file.
